Planning
by vortexgirl
Summary: Castle attempts to plan Gates' birthday party but leaves the details to his mother...


**This a one-shot for Rhinosgirl from The Reviewers Lounge's summer gift fic exchange.**

**Enjoy! :)**

* * *

"I can't believe that I am actually agreeing to this!"

Castle followed Beckett into the kitchen, beaming. "Yes! I knew you would agree to it!"

"It's completely crazy." She said flatly, opening the refrigerator to grab a drink. "Soda?"

"Yes. The blue can! Not the orange one, it tastes funny like…apple or something weird. But, back to the point..."

She interrupted him, "Oh, there is a point to this?"

"Yes. It is crazy and a completely a wonderful idea! What do you say?" He held out his hand with a smirk, deepening his voice, he added, "After all, have I ever lead you astray?"

"Yes. So, just let me get this straight...you are going to throw a surprise birthday party for Captain Gates, correct?"

His shoulders slumped dejectedly. He reached across the counter to grab his phone, typing in some numbers into the mobile device.

"Correct."

"That women hates you."

"She doesn't hate me! And anyway, this party will change her slight dislike of me. I have it all set up. I will just give a call to the person again and... voila!"

Beckett paused on her way to the couch and stared at him, incredulous. "Wait, you already had it set up? Before you got the permission from me?"

His hand froze over his phone. Hesitantly he answered, with a small voice, "Um...yes?"

He ducked as a pillow flew over his head, landing against the wall with a small thud. "What? I knew you would like the idea." He cringed when Beckett reached for another pillow.

She answered calmly. "Who is doing it?"

"Huh?"

Sighing, she slumped on the couch. "I need to know who is doing it so I know that the Precinct will be in safe hands while this is being prepared, because I will have to distract Gates."

He answered while walking as calmly as he could towards their bedroom, resisting the urge to run. "The one and only! The only person who could possibly have all the necessary qualifications. The one who has done every party I have ever had."

He heard a faint gasp from behind him. 'Uh oh...she is figuring it out...', he thought to himself. Sprinting towards the bedroom, he shouted, dramatically. "The one and only...Martha Rodgers!"

He was almost there...a soft cushion collided with the back of his head. Ow...he didn't make it.

* * *

The next morning, Beckett sat at her desk, looking over her papers with a scowl on her face. She didn't lift her head up when a shadow fell across her desk.

"You mad?"

Sighing, she looked up from her papers, at her fiancé who had sat himself in the chair by her desk. "No. But I can't believe you gave your mother permission to plan Gates' birthday party!"

"She is a great party planner!"

"Do you remember putting her in charge of the flowers for our wedding?"

Castle got a distant look in his eyes. "Oh yeah. That..."

She leaned forward to whisper to him, furiously. "And the last time we had her in the Precinct; she hired actors and scripts to act like it was in the 70s! She goes overboard on the party stuff."

"Beckett may be right, Castle." A voice said behind his chair.

"Esposito! Not you too! And I know...but I had no idea her birthday was tomorrow. Party planners don't come at such short notice. My mother was the only one who agreed to do it."

"Your mom is crazy, dude."

Becket smiled sweetly at Castle. "See?"

He stared at the ceiling with a scowl. "I have lived with the women for almost 20 years. Of course I know she is crazy."

Beckett shook her head. "I hope you know what you are doing."

"I tried to get my mother to hide Easter eggs everywhere but she didn't like that idea..."

That caught Beckett's attention. "You what? Why, why would you do that? Easter is way over. It was months ago."

"To make it Gates' favorite theme!"

"What..?"

"Easter sort of symbolizes spring. And I am pretty sure that spring is Gates' favorite season." "Castle looked proud of himself to have known of this piece of information.

Beckett hid her face in her hands, sighing. Castle immediately scowled at her lack of trust.

"It is! Besides I got my mother to get the Easter colors for streamers and balloons."

Beckett sadly thought to herself, 'The Precinct is going to be a mess.'

Esposito leaned over from his chair. "Hey man. What's the dress code for this party thing?"

"Casual. So just normal clothes, like what you're wearing now."

"Oh...ok." Looking slightly dejected, he turned back to his computer. Becket looked at Esposito's back with a slight smirk. "You wanted to see Lanie in a dress, didn't you?"

Esposito twirled around with a slightly panicked look. "What? No…" He faltered at the sight of Beckett's knowing smirk, ending his sentence with, "Yeah...maybe a little."

A whispered voice carried over to them, interrupting their discussion. "Um…psst…guys…"

They all turned to look at Ryan who was currently pretending to stare intently at his computer screen. He gave his head a short jerky motion towards Gates' office, where she was staring at them all suspiciously.

Esposito immediately rolled his chair back to his desk, Beckett leaned her head down staring at her papers intently. Castle looked around desperately for a magazine to bury himself in. Finding none, he looked towards Gates' office where she was currently glaring at him. Wincing, he got up from his chair, motioning toward the elevator, mouthing the words; 'Going now.'

Her glare only intensified. Stumbling back, he leaned down to press a kiss on Beckett's head. "See you tonight." He started off towards the elevator, completely missing the sight of Beckett staring at her papers with a wide smile.

* * *

Later that night...

"Here you go, Richard."

Castle looked up from his writing, at the colorful, sparkly, blue box his mother had just shoved into his face. He stared at it blankly, "Uh…"

"Well take it, Richard!"

"Oh right." He sheepishly took the offered box from his mother. "Why thank you, Mother! How very thoughtful of you. Giving me my birthday gift so early..."

She rolled her eyes at him. "It's not for you. It's for that Captain Gates." Seeing the confused look on her son's face, she tried to explain. "I know you haven't gotten her a gift yet. So I put all of my memories together. All the memories of you telling me about her, her personality, everything! And here you go." She patted the wrapped box he was holding.

"How did you? I wasn't going to get her anything. I am throwing the party."

"No, my dear. You and your friends on throwing the party. Besides I used all my powers as a fellow woman to find this gift. She will love it!" She headed towards the stairs, calling over her shoulder, "Good night, Richard! Busy day tomorrow and you're welcome for the gift!"

He called out to her retreating form, "Thank you?"

He gave the box a shake, trying to determine what was inside. It barely rattled. Letting out a disappointed sigh, he laid the gift on his desk. Like he was going to give Gates anything his mother picked out.

Now he was hungry. Getting up from his chair with a stretch, he walked over to the kitchen.

Yawning, he stopped in surprise. "Alexis?"

The 20 year old red-haired girl looked guilty at her dad, with a spoon in her mouth and a jar of Nutella in her hand.

"You were hungry?" He looked in amusement at her. She nodded, unable to speak with the spoon in her mouth.

"Right...well I should get to bed...Beckett's been asleep for awhile." He leaned over and gave her a kiss on her forehead. "Night, sweetheart."

He walked from the room, faintly hearing a mumbled reply, "Night, Dad."

Yawning for the second time that night, he stumbled towards his bedroom. He needed sleep.

* * *

Next morning

Castle tapped his foot on the floor, waiting patiently for the elevator to reach the right floor.

"Hey..."

He turned to look at Esposito, curiously. "Hmm?"

"Stop that tapping. It's making me nervous."

Reluctantly Castle stopped the nervous tapping of his feet, staring at the elevator doors. "I can't help it."

The elevator doors opened and they walked out, revealing the transformed room.

Gaping, Esposito remarked, "Woah...your mother goes all out, doesn't she?"

"Yeah." Castle looked around at the colorful streamers and balloons hanging off of the walls. Several desks were filled with cupcakes and cookies. One desk in the middle held the birthday cake. The room was certainly...colorful. No, that was an understatement. With all the balloons and streamers it looked like a rainbow. A Easter colored rainbow.

"Hey guys!" Ryan waved to them over from Beckett's desk.

They started walking in that direction, both of them looking up at the large banner over Gates' office proclaiming; Happy 60th Birthday!

"Ryan! Where is my mother? I would like to congratulate her on the wonderful decorations."

Esposito interrupted them. "Uh...Castle...?"

"She left. Said something about her not knowing Gates so she didn't want to stay."

"Aww. Too bad."

"Castle!"

Castle turned to look at Esposito, raising his eyebrow at his friend's panicked tone. "What?"

"The banner!" Esposito pointed upwards at the colorful banner.

"Yeah...it's great, isn't?"

"No! Gates is turning 54! Not 60!"

Castle's smile faded, he looked at the banner then at Esposito then back at the banner. "Oh no..."

He felt his phone buzz in his pocket, he brought it out in a panic, checking his messages. "They are here!" He turned to shout at all the officers who were standing around talking. "Positions everyone!"

Ryan stepped forward, worried. 'What are we going to do? We don't have time to change it."

Everyone bustled about, standing by the elevator to welcome their Captain.

The elevator dinged and the doors opened.

Castle stood under the banner in panic.

Everyone shouted in unison, "Happy Birthday!"

"Oh my..." Gates was standing in the elevator, smiling. "Thank you everyone! I didn't expect this..." Her voice trailed off as she spotted the banner. Her unamused stare was looking directly at Castle. He smiled faintly and gave her a little wave. Ryan and Esposito moved to the corner to avoid their Captain's glare. Beckett stared at the banner and gave slight glare to Castle. Trying to diffuse the awkward silence, she grabbed Gates' arm and dragged her over to the cake. " Happy birthday Captain!" She smiled brightly at Gates.

"Thank you, Detective Beckett. Thank you everyone of the _police department_ for doing this."

Someone cried out from the back of the group, "Cut the cake!"

Beckett handed the cake knife to Gates, she started to cut the cake into equal slices with a smile. Beckett slid over to her fiancé with a fake smile, whispering in his ear. "How could you let that happen?"

He held his hands up in a loss. "I didn't do it! It was my mother."

Beckett looked him in the eye. "If you think she 'disliked' you before. Well, she probably hates you now." She turned back, walking towards Gates.

He waved her off, chuckling slightly. "Oh I doubt it is that bad."

Esposito leaned up to his ear. "Just look at how she is cutting that cake..."

Castle casually turned to look and immediately stopped chuckling. Gates was taking the cake knife and cutting each piece with a tight controlled hand. Anger was obvious in her eyes as she sliced the poor cake. He swallowed nervously as Ryan leaned up to whisper in his ear. "I am betting she is imagining you as the cake."

He turned to look at his friends, with fear hidden in his eyes. They smirked at him and spoke in unison, "We are going to have some cake." They both left patting his shoulder, sympathetically.

* * *

2 hours later

"That was great!"

"The cupcakes were the best!"

"The room looks awesome!"

Castle listened to all the compliments with a smile as everyone began to leave. He was glad they enjoyed it...even if Gates ignored him during the whole time. He looked around at the few officers who volunteered to stay behind and clean up while Gates did some work in her office.

"You ready, Castle?"

He turned around to see Beckett standing with Ryan and Esposito, holding out his coat to him. Taking it from her, he walked behind his friends slowly while listening to them laugh at whatever they were discussing. He brought his head up while passing Gates' office, noticing her opening a sparkly blue box. He stopped walking, horrified.

A sparkly blue box.

Blue box.

Sparkly.

Oh no...

He brought his head up quickly, the elevator doors began to close with his friends safely inside. He broke into a run towards the elevator. "Guys! Wait for me!" He ran straight into the doors as they closed.

"Castle! Is this a joke?!"

He froze in front of the doors at the sound of Gate's shout. He turned around cautiously, only to duck as something hard flew over his head, hitting the elavator doors and landing on the ground, it was a book. He took one look at the title and took off down one of the corridors. Not caring if Gates was actually following him.

Was his mother trying to kill him?! What on earth did he tell her about Gates that made her think that; Anger Management for Dummies was a good idea?!

He kept running down the corridors, hoping in his heart that Beckett would be the one to solve his murder.


End file.
